1. ++
CHAIRMAN
Sandra Mims Rowe
VICE CHAIR CHAIRMAN
HONORARY
Kathleen Carroll
Terry Anderson THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
October 7, 2013
His Excellency Barack Obama
President of the United States of America
Washington, D.C.
White House
HONORARY CHAIRMAN
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Joel Simon
Terry Anderson
DIRECTORS DIRECTOR
EXECUTIVE
Andrew Alexander
Joel Simon
Franz Allina
DIRECTORS
Christiane Amanpour ABC NEWS
Andrew Alexander
Dean Baquetthe NEW YORK TIMES
Franz Allina
John S. Carroll
Christiane Amanpour
ABC NEWS/CNN INTERNATIONAL
Kathleen Carroll THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Via facsimile: +1 202-456-2461
Dean Baquet THE NEW THE WASHINGTON
Rajiv Chandrasekaran YORK TIMES
Dear President Obama,
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
THE WASHINGTON POST
We are writing to express our concern regarding a pattern of actions taken by
your administration that impedes the flow of information on issues of great
public interest and thwarts the free and open discussion necessary to a
democracy. We cite specifically the use of secret subpoenas against news
organizations, prosecutions that equate leaking classified documents to the
press with espionage, and the increased limitations on access to information
that is in the public interest.
These concerns have prompted us to commission the first comprehensive
report on U.S. press freedom conditions in CPJ’s 32-year history. The
accompanying report, written by Leonard Downie Jr., Weil Family Professor
of Journalism at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of
Journalism and Mass Communication and former executive editor of The
Washington Post, will be released on Thursday, October 10, at a press
conference at the Newseum in Washington.
Based on the report, the Committee to Protect Journalists makes the following
recommendations to your administration:
1. Affirm and guarantee that journalists will not be at legal risk or
prosecuted for receiving confidential and/or classified information.
2. Be more forthcoming about the scope and nature of National
Security Agency and other surveillance activities as they are being
applied to domestic and international journalists. Develop policies
to limit surveillance of journalists’ communications to ensure the
integrity of a journalist’s right to protect his or her sources.
POST
John
S. Carroll
Sheila Coronel COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
Rajiv Chandrasekaran
Josh Friedman COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
Sheila Coronel
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
Anne Garrels
Josh Friedman COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
James C. Goodale DEBEVOISE & PLIMPTON
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
Cheryl Gould NBC NEWS
Anne Garrels
Arianna Huffington AOL HUFFINGTON POST
James C. Goodale DEBEVOISE & PLIMPTON
MEDIA GROUP
Cheryl Gould NBC NEWS
Charlayne Hunter-Gault
Arianna Huffington
Gwen Ifill PBS
AOL HUFFINGTON POST MEDIA GROUP
Jonathan Klein GETTY IMAGES
Charlayne Hunter-Gault
Jane Kramer THE NEW YORKER
Jonathan Klein GETTY IMAGES
Mhamed Krichen AL-JAZEERA
Jane Kramer THE NEW YORKER
David Laventhol
Mhamed Krichen AL-JAZEERA
Lara Logan CBS NEWS
David Laventhol
Rebecca MacKinnon
Lara Logan CBS NEWS
Kati Marton
Rebecca MacKinnon
Michael Massing
Kati Marton
Geraldine Fabrikant Metz THE NEW YORK
Michael Massing
TIMES
Geraldine Fabrikant Metz
Victor Navasky THE NATION
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Andres Oppenheimer THE MIAMI HERALD
Victor Navasky THE NATION
Burl Osborne FREEDOM COMMUNICATIONS
Andres Oppenheimer THE MIAMI HERALD
Clarence Page CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Clarence Page CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Norman Pearlstine BLOOMBERG L.P.
Norman Pearlstine BLOOMBERG L.P.
Ahmed Rashid
Ahmed Rashid
Gene Roberts PHILIP MERRILL COLLEGE OF
Gene Roberts PHILIP MERRILL COLLEGE
JOURNALISM UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
OF JOURNALISM, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
María Teresa Ronderos SEMANA.COM
María Teresa Ronderos SEMANA.COM
Diane Sawyer ABC NEWS
Diane Sawyer ABC NEWS
David Schlesinger THOMSON REUTERS
David Schlesinger
Paul C.Tash TAMPA BAY TIMES
Paul C.Tash TAMPA BAY TIMES
Jacob Weisberg THE SLATE GROUP
Jacob Weisberg THE SLATE GROUP
Mark Whitaker CNN WORLDWIDE
Mark Whitaker
Brian Williams NBC NEWS
Brian Williams NBC NEWS
Matthew Winkler BLOOMBERG NEWS
Matthew Winkler BLOOMBERG NEWS
3. Implement revised Justice Department guidelines and prevent the
filing of unnecessary, overly-broad, and/or secret subpoenas of
journalists’ records.
4. End the practice of bringing espionage charges against people who
leak classified information to journalists, which could create a
330 7th Avenue,11th Floor
New York, NY 10001 USA
PHONE: +1 (212) 465-1004
FAX: +1 (212) 465-9568
info@cpj.org
www.cpj.org

2. severe chilling effect and thwart the free flow of information on
matters of public interest.
5. Make good on promises to increase transparency of government
activities and end government intimidation of officials who might
speak to the press. Enforce prompt and less restrictive responses to
FOIA requests and more systematic and far-reaching efforts to
reduce over-classification. Encourage administration officials to be
open and responsive to press inquiries.
6. Advocate for the broadest possible definition of “journalist” or
“journalism” in any federal shield law. Any federal shield law
should protect the newsgathering process, rather than professional
credentials, experience, or status, so that it cannot be used as a
means of de facto government licensing.
We understand that your administration and its Justice Department have heard
the strong criticism of its use of secret subpoenas and responded with revised
guidelines still to be implemented. And we appreciate your clear statements
on the need for Americans to know and be able to publicly debate their
government’s practices regarding national security. But the actions of your
administration do not lean toward openness.
Mr. President, we respectfully request a meeting with you or someone you
designate to discuss our concerns and our recommendations for improving the
press freedom environment in the United States. We thank you for your attention
and look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Sandra Mims Rowe
Chairman
Joel Simon
Executive Director
CC:
Jay Carney, White House Press Secretary
Eric Holder, Attorney General of the United States
Brian Fallon, Director of the Office of Public Affairs, the United States
Department of Justice